Former NRL player Lachlan Coote made the switch from professional rugby league to residential real estate in Townsville, and what he has discovered about the market up there might surprise you. In this episode of Property Insights, Mark Bouris sits down with Lachlan to unpack what is really happening in Townsville right now. Median house prices up 80% in five years. A vacancy rate of just 0.01%. A defence force expansion bringing 500 new families to the city. A port expansion, new infrastructure, a brand new stadium, and a lifestyle that is starting to turn heads nationally. Lachlan also gets candid about the reality of starting from scratch in a new industry, the cold calls, the letterbox drops at 4am, and why being a former Cowboys player did not make selling homes as easy as he thought it would. If you are curious about regional property markets, thinking about investing outside the major capitals, or just want an honest conversation about what it takes to build a career in real estate, this episode is worth your time. Topics covered

• What it is really like to transition from elite sport to real estate

• How Lachlan built his client database and farming area from scratch

• Why Townsville's median house price has grown 80% since 2020

• The role of the defence force expansion in driving demand

• Vacancy rates, yields, and what investors need to know right now

• How interest rate rises have changed buyer behaviour on the ground

• The Townsville lifestyle case — schools, amenities, employment and liveability

• What vendors are doing in a slowing market and how to manage their expectations

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